We’ve won the laws and we’re putting them into action. There are now four key areas where progress is underway.
The first three were to tackle some of the areas in road transport where change is urgent.
1. 30-day payment terms
Even large transport employers are struggling under extended payment terms from clients. Cameron Dunn, CEO of FBT Transwest, recently spoke at a delegation to Parliament House how he paid his people in 7 days, but was paid by clients in 120. That’s why one of our first applications was to ensure maximum 30-day payment terms and ensure transport businesses small and large can stay sustainable.
2. Last mile parcel delivery
The last mile parcel delivery space is only getting bigger – but it’s being flooded with gig-like operators with exploitative conditions, and no floor on how low standards can go. We put in an application to ensure there are fair standards so workers in this space can make a fair living, and decent employers don’t have to compete by unfairly lowering conditions.
3. Food and beverage delivery
Similarly to last mile, the gig economy has raced into food and beverage delivery with next to no standards. Since 2017, 22 food delivery workers have been killed in Australia, and standards are urgent to stop the deadly pressure on workers, and stop this model creeping into the rest of the transport industry.
With consultation wrapping up for these applications, we will soon see better standards put in place for these first applications, which will begin to create real change.
Earlier this year we also made an application in the cash-in-transit industry to call on banks to pay up for fair standards, with that application ongoing. It’s a huge display of the power of these laws that we can bring in the big banks and retailers and make them listen to transport workers.
What’s next?
What we know is that the more we stay united as an industry, the better the outcomes we can achieve. We’re working on an application in rideshare where gig companies like Uber and Didi continue to slash rates. We’re also working with the rest of the transport industry on where next to focus our efforts using the laws.